Indian Illegal Immigration To US Via 'Donkey Route' Drops 70%

The sharp decline follows a series of measures, including direct deportation flights from the U.S. to India and heightened surveillance along the border. In Punjab, a key source region, police have dismantled several human smuggling rings, arresting facilitators who charged exorbitant fees for perilous journeys.

Travelers once paid upwards of $50,000 for the 'donkey route,' which typically involved multiple transit countries and forged documents. Now, with stricter visa screenings and real-time intelligence sharing between U.S. and Indian agencies, the route has become both harder to access and more likely to end in arrest and deportation.

Local authorities in Punjab have also launched awareness campaigns in villages, warning families about the financial and legal consequences. Many who had mortgaged land or taken loans to fund the journey now face ruin, as smugglers often vanish with the money or abandon clients mid-route.

The drop is seen as a win for bilateral cooperation, but officials caution that smugglers are adapting, using new transit hubs and digital payment methods. They urge continued vigilance to prevent the route from re-emerging.